The best low-GI foods

Australian consumers are better informed than ever about what they’re eating; many of us actively engage in product comparisons prior to purchase, especially now manufacturers and producers are obliged to disclose ingredients and nutritional composition. But a low-GI label does not automatically a health food make, so it’s time to lift the lid, as it were, on foods that are the real low-GI giants.

The Glycemic Index Hit List

According to Accredited Practising Dietitian (APD) Sonya Stanley, “The Glycemic Index (GI) ranks foods according to how quickly they are digested. Low GI foods are slowly digested and therefore more filling, which can be beneficial for healthy weight and blood glucose levels.”

Many whole fruits (including apples and oranges, which are affordable year round)

Pasta (excepting ‘quick cook’ varieties)

Wholegrain breads

Wholegrain cereals (oats: one of the reigning champions of low-GI living)

In general, look for foods certified by the Glycemic Index Foundation; products displaying the Foundation’s GI Symbol meet all criteria for sustaining energy and helping weight management. For instance, the Foundation recommends the SunRice low-GI range of white, brown and steamed rices as alternatives to such rice varieties as Arborio, Jasmine and Calrose.

Knowledge is (Food) Power

Remember: A low-GI ranking is no automatic guarantee of nutritional value; chocolate is low-GI, but it’s not exactly a healthy choice (regardless of what that little voice in your head tells you at 3 o’clock every afternoon). Most of us already know this, but it bears repeating: you’re looking for foods that multi-skill across the nutritional spectrum.

So next time you hit the supermarket, turn down the volume on that little voice in your head and just think: Low-GI + High-Nutritional IQ = Healthier Body + Soul.